"No Man Is An Island"

“No man is an island.” That remarkably insightful and true statement was written by John Donne in 1624, and it is what the Lord has been speaking to my heart this week. I think the Lord just wants to encourage you that if you are going through a difficulty of any kind, little or big, reach out to those around you who are grounded in the Word so they can stand with you and be an encouragement to you.

I used to look at those “mighty tongue talking, Holy Ghost filled, prayer powerhouses, faith-filled dynamos, going-on-with-God-no-matter-what-storm-or-threat-of-hell-comes-near me” type people around me and think I couldn’t talk to them about my struggles because they would think I was weak. Dear Ones, when we think that way we are either walking in religious pride or we are letting the devil totally confuse us! That’s right where the devil wants us...isolated…so he can spend more time talking to us and trying to convince us that he is right, but he is wrong! God put us on the earth to fellowship with Him and one another. He sent the disciples out in two, remember (Luke 10:1). Why? So they could come into agreement together, so they could encourage each other, so they could face life’s issues with one another in support and in faith (Mt. 18:19)! Yes, we need to encourage ourselves and build up ourselves in the Word, but we also need each other. We need each other’s insight, wisdom, and revelation to meet the challenges of this world! That’s one of the great reasons to be in fellowship in your local church and one of the reasons the devil wants to keep you out of church (Heb. 10:25)! A church is just a bunch of people going through similar struggles as you, but it is a group of people joining together every week to share one another’s burdens and joys! We are each meant to do that for one another, and it is our joy to help one another with the love and strength of Christ. So don’t ever let the devil tell you that if you need help walking through a trial, you are weak or of little faith! No! Sometimes the greatest walk of faith is to reach out to another to share your need and let another help you! Don’t think you always need to do it alone! “No man is an island.” That is such a great statement! We all need each other and we need each other’s faith to make it through. Don’t look at those strong towers of God around you and think you can’t talk to them or ask for help or prayer. That’s what God put them in the body for. Don’t put them on a pedestal. They don’t want to be there anyway! Putting them on a pedestal just puts a burden on their shoulders that they didn’t ask for and don’t want. Besides, they have their own issues too. Everyone does. You have strengths and wisdom they might need. We’re all puzzle pieces that are only completed with one another when we fellowship together.

Don’t rob someone else of the joy and blessing they receive when they can help you. There is no greater joy than being able to take the wisdom and experience that God has given each of us and use them to reach out and encourage and bless another. In true humility and wisdom, if you have a problem, don’t struggle alone! Let someone help you with the love and grace and strength of God. Reach out and be helped!

One more thing…if you have been standing believing for something and have asked someone to stand with you in prayer, and that issue has not resolved that way you were hoping or expecting, don’t feel condemned. Don’t let that keep you from asking for help next time. Don’t let the devil trick you by telling you that your fellow believer will think you just didn’t have enough faith. That’s not true! Each of us has believed for things in our lives and has asked others to come into agreement with us in the Word, and we have been disappointed. I wish it weren’t so, but it is a reality we all have faced in life. When we get to Heaven, it won’t be that way anymore. In the meantime, we are all doing our best by standing on the Word in faith, knowing God is on our side, knowing God’s Word is true and forever settled in Heaven (Psalm 119:89), and walking in the wisdom we have at this time in our lives. When things turn out differently than we expect, we must not blame God. We must move on, look for the blessings that we did receive along the way, and keep standing on the Word each time for every trial, knowing that God is our Redeemer and our help in time of need (Heb. 4:16), and that He has given us one another for encouragement and blessing. He never fails us, and we cannot fail one another by walking as islands on this earth.

Tap into the strength we have in one another as we walk out the Word together,

Lisa Marie

If you have never made Jesus the Lord of your life and desire to, pray this: Dear God, I believe that Jesus is your Son, that He died on the cross for me and was resurrected for my redemption. I choose to make Jesus the Lord of my life. I thank you for forgiving me and for filling me with Your Holy Spirit. I thank You that I am Your child, that You are my Father, and that You have great things planned for me. Amen.